Forget Giants Making Playoffs

BY LESLIE MONTEIRO

(Photo credit: Matthew Pearce/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Odell Beckham Jr. spent Thanksgiving with his family and friends watching the Giants play the Dallas Cowboys. Those two teams are his suitors for his service.

After watching the Cowboys beat the Giants 28-20 on Thursday at AT&T Stadium, Beckham can cross the Giants off his list, and the Giants might as well cancel their interview with him and say they are not interested.

It says here that the Giants are not making the playoffs. They don’t have offensive playmakers, offensive line and cornerbacks to survive and reach 10 wins. Their final six games will get harder with games against the Washington Commanders, Philadelphia Eagles, Commanders, Minnesota Vikings, Indianapolis Colts and Eagles. Three of their final four games will be on the road.

Do the math. It does not look good.

The Giants entered halftime with a 13-7 lead. Their defense frustrated Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott, and Giants quarterback Daniel Jones made enough plays to give them a lead.

It sure appeared the Giants might have had enough grit to get a win on this day, but that can only get so far. Not against a team like the Dallas Cowboys, who boast a mean front on the offensive line and the playmakers that Beckham and the Giants envy.

It was only a matter of time until the Cowboys figured it out. They knew they could not lose to a team that they are better than at home and be in a position where they may have to fight for a playoff spot.

The Cowboys responded by outscoring the Giants 21-7 in the second half. They scored two touchdowns in the third quarter, and added a finishing touch by scoring the first touchdown of the fourth quarter.

The Cowboys stuck to the basics by running the ball and imposing their will on the Giants in that second half. When Giants defensive coordinator Don Martindale continued to put the blitz on Prescott, the Cowboys quarterback was able to get into a rhythm with his wide receivers Michael Gallup and CeeDee Lamb.

The Giants had no response. Giants running back Saquon Barkley struggled to do much in the second half, finishing the game by running for only 39 yards. This explained why the Giants did nothing in the second half and lost the game.

Jones struggled to throw in the second half. He had many three and outs there. Once his security blanket offered nothing in Barkley, he was toast. The Giants don’t have many playmakers for him to work with. Giants second-round pick Wan’Dale Robinson is out for the season, Kenny Golladay is useless and Richie James won’t remind anyone of Justin Jefferson or even Amani Toomer. Darius Slayton did the best he could, but then the Cowboys had him well covered.

For the Giants to give the Cowboys a game in the first half is impressive when you think about it. This speaks to how well Giants head coach Brian Daboll and his staff prepared them for this game and season. But this team can only go as far as they can with Xs and Os’. It’s about the Jimmys and the Joes, and the Giants lack that. Daboll and Giants general manager Joe Schoen knew this, too, when they took the job on.

It’s remarkable that Daboll got seven wins out of this limited roster. This should get Daboll the NFL Coach of the Year award. This team overachieved. Everyone figured the Giants would win four games. Yet, here they are, competing in the division with a spot in the playoffs.

The rookie Giants head coach has a challenge ahead of him to get this team to the finish line. Their cornerback duo Adoree’ Jackson and Fabian Moreau are out for the season most llkely. What playmaker can he trust at this point with Barkley not even being reliable? Their offensive line is not even that good. No one will confuse this Giants defense with the past Giants championship defenses.

Maybe it wouldn’t have mattered anyway as this team wasn’t that good to begin with. Now, reality has caught up to them.

It showed on Thursday.

If Beckham decides to sign with the Giants despite what he saw, then he is not serious about winning and he is even stupider than I thought.

This writer can be reached on Twitter: @LeslieMonteiro6